No matter how hard you try to keep everyone safe on your manufacturing floor, accidents happen. One minute everything could be going along fine, and the next thing you know someone has been injured. It could be anything from a sprained ankle to a dislocated knee caused by tripping over an unmarked hazard, or something worse, like the loss of a finger or limb.
What happens next? After calling in an ambulance, your next call as an employer is to contact your workers’ compensation insurance provider.
What Does Workers’ Compensation Insurance Cover?
Workers’ compensation insurance is designed to pay for a number of different things when an employee gets hurt in the workplace. For example, this insurance will often pay for:
- Medical Care – This includes the cost of doctors’ visits, hospital or ER expenses, and any required imaging. Treatments, including medication, physical therapy, and medical items, such as crutches, splints, casts, and more, are also usually also covered.
- Lost Wages – If your employee ends up missing work due to an injury, then insurance will usually pay for those lost wages. Of course, this only applies to work missed because of things like doctors’ appointments, time spent in the hospital, physical therapy sessions, and more.
What Doesn’t it Cover?
Although some plans may cover alternative treatments, such as chiropractic visits and other similar treatments, it all depends on the doctor’s orders and whether or not these treatments have been pre-approved by the insurance provider.
How Does the Process Work?
Once an employee is injured on the manufacturing floor, a number of things need to happen. After the worker is sent off to get their injury examined and treated, their immediate supervisor needs to put together a report detailing what happened. This usually consists of talking to witnesses, taking photos of the area where the injury occurred, and other forms of research.
The supervisor then sends the report to their boss or someone in human resources (although in some cases, both), and it eventually ends up in the hands of the company’s insurance provider. From there, a claims representative is assigned to the case and the claim is either approved or denied.
The Importance of Workers’ Compensation Insurance
If your company didn’t have workers’ compensation insurance, then it could possibly be in for a large financial loss. After all, the employee could sue the company to recoup all their medical expenses and lost wages, and a representative from your business may end up in court negotiating a settlement. As expected, it’s less expensive and easier to have workers’ compensation insurance in place. Plus, the state where your business is located may require it to have this type of insurance.
Have Questions? Contact Charlotte Insurance
If you think your business qualifies for a workers’ compensation plan or needs a new one, contact Charlotte Insurance. Our agents can explore and explain all available options and put together the insurance coverage plan your business needs based on a number of factors, such as the type of manufacturing your company does and the number of employees you have.